Could you snow/wake board behind an ATV or something? Surely there must be a flatlands solution to board-craving.
Didn’t you used to snowboard competitively? I’m curious about what that’s like … to find yourself in Iowa after spending so much time on mountains.
I’ve spent a lot of time recently recalling memories of being on the mountain. What’s interesting is they aren’t memories of great runs, but rather the time I would spend sitting at the top of a ridge, taking in the moment before a run.
Mostly I recall this spot at Stevens Pass that I used to go to often, especially on powder days. It was tucked in the trees with a view of the cascades in the distance. You couldn’t see or hear any clues that you were at a park. I’d chill out there, sometimes with friends and sometimes alone. It was a great spot. Thinking about it brings this wonderful feeling of relaxation, happiness and freedom.
It was also a very strange and excitingly scary start to a favorite run of mine that a friend showed me. Basically you just aimed straight down between two large Douglas Firs, the branches of which blocked the path beyond. About 3 feet after the two trees you’d drop off a 10-15 foot cliff (depth depending on snow base) which deposited you into this steep bowl that was hidden by woods from the trail system. After you landed you’d be going crazy fast and had about 2-3 turns before you hit the woods and then the main trail.
Sometimes I would spend my day doing nothing but that run.
There are few moments I can picture perfectly. The moment my daughter was born and sitting at the top of that cliff are two of them.
Yes, I miss the mountains.
There is a place in dubuque that you can snowboard. It is about 3 hours from here. It is a fake ski resort. Ottumwa actually has some really nice sledding hills. I’m not sure if you would be able to board down them or not.
There are a lot of Fairfielders who love snowboarding. Maybe someone can give you some other tips to fulfull that craving.
There’s actually 2 places near Dubuque, Sundown on the Iowa side and Chestnut Mountain on the Illinois side (which is actually at Galena). They’re alright for beginners like me but I’d imagine they’d get boring fairly quickly once you knew what you were doing.
Further north, at places like Afton near Minneapolis/St. Paul and Tyrol Basin in Wisconsin, it seems to be better, from what I’ve heard. Never been to either myself.
The lack of good elevation change is an issue in the summer, too, since even the good mountain bike trails measure elevation change in the high tens of feet. The trail builders do great work with what they have to work with, but still… there was a trail near my grandfather’s house in Colorado where the trail entrance alone had more climbing than my favorite trails here.
But, yeah. Snow. Lots of it. Rather more than usual.
Oddly enough, I have been to Afton. I used to be a traveling engineer and ended up in Minneapolis for a one week assignment. During the winter I usually took my snowboarding case with me (which kept all my gear) and rather than come home for the weekend before going to my next assignment, I’d just go to the nearest snow park. Afton was kinda boring.
What I should do is take my daughter out to Dubuque and get her comfortable before hauling her out to the real mountains (and paying the real mountain prices). I just looked up the cost of going to some snow parks in the rockies and the prices have gone up like 30-40% since 3-4 years ago!
Heh. I’ve only camped at the state park at Afton, never seen the ski area. The campsite is semi-hiking access, about a mile walk from the parking lot, and has great views of the St. Croix river. We would have rode the MTB trails they put up in the ski area in the summer, except the worst thunderstorm of the summer blew through the night before.
I learned to snowboard at Sundown. It was good for that.
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